ReviewThe Journal of endocrinology2015
60 YEARS OF NEUROENDOCRINOLOGY: The hypothalamo-prolactin axis.
Review in The Journal of endocrinology, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 139 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
139 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 338 citations in OpenAlex.
- The relationship between low prolactin and type 2 diabetes.Reviews in endocrine & metabolic disorders · 2024Pooled it
- Impaired reproduction after exposure to ADHD drugs: Systematic review of animal studies.The International journal of risk & safety in medicine · 2017Pooled it
- The effect of yoga training on postpartum prolactin and oxytocin levels in primipara women.Journal of medicine and life · 2024Trial
- Sex-specific differences in the relationship between prolactin and glucose metabolism in first-episode schizophrenia.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2026Article
- Prolactin as an immuno-neuroendocrine integrator: linking immune homeostasis, hematopoietic dynamics and iron metabolism.Molecular biology reports · 2026Review
- From brain bioenergetics to hypothalamic glucoregulation: A shared-systems hypothesis for intrinsic dysglycemia in schizophrenia.Reviews in endocrine & metabolic disorders · 2026Review
- Kisspeptin as a test of hypothalamic dysfunction in pubertal and reproductive disorders.Andrology · 2026Review
- Endocrinology at a Miniature Level: Pluripotent Stem-Cell-Derived Organoid Models of Hypothalamus-Pituitary Axes.Biomolecules · 2026Review
- Pregnancy and delivery after surgical remission in women with prolactinomas desiring pregnancy: Refining surgical indications.Pituitary · 2026Article
- Spatially resolved molecular sex differences at single-cell resolution in the adult human ventromedial and arcuate hypothalamus.Cell reports · 2026Article
- Knockout of PI4-Kinase A in GnRH Neurons Causes their Prepubertal Death.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- From the perspective of prolactin: a view on obesity.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Review
- Tryptophan modulates the impact of prolactin on insomnia in perimenopausal women: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Transient Hyperprolactinemia Associated With Semaglutide in a Patient With Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.Case reports in medicine · 2026Article
- Non-Genitally Stimulated Orgasms Increase Plasma Prolactin in a Menopausal Woman.International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2026Article
- PI4-kinase A is essential for survival of the GnRH neurons.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Article
- Network-level organization of systemic inflammation reflects early Alzheimer's-like behavioral changes.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Concerning the circadian rhythms of prolactin, its secretion timing, and regulation of the affiliative mind.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2025Review
- Evaluation of the Effect of Alpha2-Adrenergic Receptor Stimulation on Prolactin Secretion Using the Clonidine Test in the Diagnosis of Children with Short Stature.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Dopaminergic signalling in gastrointestinal health and disease.Nature reviews. Gastroenterology & hepatology · 2025Review
79 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The hypothalamic control of prolactin secretion is different from other anterior pituitary hormones, in that it is predominantly inhibitory, by means of dopamine from the tuberoinfundibular dopamine neurons. In addition, prolactin does not have an endocrine target tissue, and therefore lacks the classical feedback pathway to regulate its secretion. Instead, it is regulated by short loop feedback, whereby prolactin itself acts in the brain to stimulate production of dopamine and thereby inhibit its own secretion. Finally, despite its relatively simple name, prolactin has a broad range of functions in the body, in addition to its defining role in promoting lactation. As such, the hypothalamo-prolactin axis has many characteristics that are quite distinct from other hypothalamo-pituitary systems. This review will provide a brief overview of our current understanding of the neuroendocrine control of prolactin secretion, in particular focusing on the plasticity evident in this system, which keeps prolactin secretion at low levels most of the time, but enables extended periods of hyperprolactinemia when necessary for lactation. Key prolactin functions beyond milk production will be discussed, particularly focusing on the role of prolactin in inducing adaptive responses in multiple different systems to facilitate lactation, and the consequences if prolactin action is impaired. A feature of this pleiotropic activity is that functions that may be adaptive in the lactating state might be maladaptive if prolactin levels are elevated inappropriately. Overall, my goal is to give a flavour of both the history and current state of the field of prolactin neuroendocrinology, and identify some exciting new areas of research development.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.